Albus Potter and the Basilisk's Lair
by RebelzHeart
Summary: When Albus stumbles upon the Basilisk's Lair, at first he thinks it will be fun to have a secret hideout. But then he meets a man in a notebook who calls himself 'Mal Lucius Foy' who will stop at nothing to become immortal, and suddenly it's not so simple anymore.
1. Prologue

And tall, gray haired woman stood over a sleeping man.

"Open your eyes, Lucius." She spat out in a poisoned voice. "Stop pretending to be asleep. I _know_ you're awake."

The white haired man cracked open an eye, and smiled. "Narcissa." He said with a thin smile. "What brings you here?"

"You have murdered me!" Narcissa hissed angrily. "Lucius... what have you done? Why did you do such a thing? Basilisk poison in my cup? What of Draco?"

Lucius smiled wickedly. "I have finally accomplished my goal..." He murmured in a cold, hissing voice. "I will soon die... but no matter. I will be sealed in the diary of Lord Voldemort himself! And then, I shall be freed by one of the disgusting Potters... and I will live in eternity! Immortal! What could be better?"

Disgust lodged itself in Narcissa's throat. "You're sick!" She exclaimed angrily.

Lucius laughed, a crazed, wild laugh. "You will see, Narcissa!" He exclaimed with a croaking laugh of joy. "I will live on and rule the Wizarding World!"

"You're crazy!"

"No... Narcissa." Lucius suddenly let out a cough, and his body was once again weak and frail. "Your blood will be spilt for the sake of my dream... but your sacrifice will not me in vain!"

Suddenly Narcissa let out a scream of pain, and dropped to a knee, her hand grabbing at the wooden table next to Lucius' bed. "This will never work..." She croaked out and chills wracked her body. "Draco will stop you..."

"My son is a pathetic, spineless man." Lucius sneered.

"Lucius..." Narcissa whispered. "I won't live to regret saying these words... The world is once again in the hands of a Potter. We're doomed."


	2. The Boring Beginning

When people stare at you, it's either that you're famous or infamous.

Albus Potter was neither.

His father was the famous one. The great Harry Potter, savior of the wizarding world.

Sometimes it made him feel sad and like someone had punched him in the gut. Other times he was proud of his father, happy that so many people aknowladged him. What he hated was when everyone stared at him as though expecting him to be brilliant or perfect. Because Albus was far from it. He was as imperfect as could be.

"Hurry up Albus!" Ginny Weasley yelled out to her youngest son. "Get down already!"

"Coming!" Albus gave his suitcase one last push, zipped the zipper, and turned to run down the stairs. On the way out of his room, he bumped into James, who muttered to him under his breath teasingly.

"Hey, bet you'll be Slytherin." And with a laugh, James ran down the stairs.

Albus glared, and ran down the stairs.

As soon as they were down, Ginny instantly smoothed down his black robes, which she demanded that he wore, and adjusted his shirt, saying something about an uneven hem.

"Well, get in the car!" Ginny said as they went outside into the fresh September air. "I still can't believe that Harry passed the driving test..."

"You said that you had complete faith in me!" Albus' dad exclaimed.

"I did... I had complete faith that you would fail, that is." Ginny mumbled, then sat down on the passenger seat.

Victorie rolled her eyes, but the strawberry-blond haired girl got in the car and sat down, then very promptly asked her dad how on earth to buckle the seat-belts again.

"I don't believe it." James, who was older then Albus by two years, muttered. "You're already in your sixth year, and you _still_ don't know how to buckle your core buckle?"

"It's car buckle, James." Harry corrected, sounding exasperated. "And do _you_ know how to buckle your seat belt?"

"Well... no... but..."

"My point exactly."

James scowled, and Lily laughed. "_I_ know." She informed the two in a smug, proud voice. "Albus taught me!"

"Albus knows too?" James asked, groaning.

"Looks like I'm _still_ smarter then you." Albus replied with a smirk.

"No! I'm smarter!"

"Give up! I know how to buckle my seat belt!"

"It's a useless little muggle contraption!" James argued.

"I can get better grades in a test."

"Tests are stupid."

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

"Then how are you smarter then me, huh?"

"...My pranks are better."

"Pranks are stupid."

"No, tests are!"

"No, Pranks!"

"Then why'd you use one on me, huh!?"

"I just... I just...!"

"Copy cat. I'll bet you might be in Slytherin."

"I won't! I won't, James!"

James smirked. "How do _you_ know?" He teased. "Let's see... there's the fact that you're always going on about how smart you are. And that means that you've got to be cunning too, right? I think that you _totally_ look like a Slytherin..."

"Shut up James!" Albus roared, feeling all of his uncertainties washing over him.

"Calm down boys." Victorie shouted, then she gave a sigh. "Now, Lily, why don't you show off and teach me how to _properly_ tie a seat belt or whatever this muggle thing is called?"

"Right." Lily shot a superior look to the boys (mostly James) and started lecturing Victorie on how to _properly_ tie a seat belt. And they were off.

* * *

Victorie dashed off a soon as they reached platform 9 and three-quarters. Albus simply followed James and his parents, the redheaded Lily walking slowly behind, clutching her mom's hand.

"I want to go to Hogwarts." Lily said to Harry.

"Pretty soon and you'll be going." Harry informed Lily.

The nine year old's pretty features instantly twisted into an annoyed scowl. "Two more years." She muttered. "But I want to go _now_!"

Meanwhile, James went back to whispering in Albus' ear. "Slytherin Albus. I bet that you'll look good in green..."

"Shut up!" Albus whispered fiercely, giving his older brother a shove.

"Just saying, you might be... who am I kidding, you're a total snot nosed Slytherin right here." James whispered to him with a smirk.

"Shut up!" Albus shouted in a quiet whisper.

"Bet you'll even make friends with a Malfoy..."

"I won't!" The first year shouted angrily, his anger getting the better of him. "I _won't_ be in Slytherin, James!"

"James." Ginny, who had been listening to their whispered argument, exclaimed sharply. "Stop teasing your brother, _now_!"

The elder of the Potter brother's grinned cheekily. "I only said that he _might_ be, mum. Key word: might!"

"James..." Ginny growled.

"Hmph!"

"Ginny, look! There's Ron and Hermione!" The family quickly went their way over, Ginny shooting pointed looks at James every now and then.

"Hey Rose!" Albus exclaimed, quickly running over to the brown haired girl, who turned his way and grinned.

"Hi Albus, anything cool over the summer?"

As the two began to chat with each other, Lily and Hugo, Rose's little brother, started chatting and talking about what houses they wanted to be sorted in when they grew up.

"I want to be in Gryffindor." Albus told Rose confidently. "But I just hope that I won't be in Slytherin... that'd be scary." He shivered.

"I think that I want to be in Gryffindor too." Rose agreed. "But... I suppose that being in Ravenclaw will be alright as well... I think so, at least."

Albus grinned. "If you wanted to be in it, I bet you could." He said. "You're really smart.

Rose grinned as well. "Thanks!" She said cheerfully.

"If you don't get in Gryffindor, and especially get in Slytherin, we'll disinherit you." Uncle Ron chimed up. "But no pressure."

"Ron!" Aunt Hermione exclaimed, then sighed. "Honestly... what to do with you..."

"Kiss me on the cheek?" Ron asked hopefully.

"No."

"Awnn..."

"Albus!" James shouted. "Let's get on the train!"

"Right!" And he boarded the Hogwarts express.


	3. We Hate Malfoy

Climbing a little onto the seat, on his tip-toes, Albus finally managed to put away his suitcase with a little grunt. Besides him, he noted that Rose had done the same.

"I hope that James and Louis don't cause _too_ much trouble..." Rose said, sounding worried.

Albus sighed. "I just hope that we don't get in the middle of one of their pranks." He replied. "Contrary to them getting in trouble."

"Contrary?" Rose asked raising an eyebrow, an amused expression on her lips. "Albus! You've given me a heart attack! Where on earth have you learned such a _big_ and _complicated_ word. Don't tell me... I've been a horrible influence! To think that you might be..." She gave a little gasp of horror. "_Smart_!"

"The horror!" Albus agreed with a little gasp. "The horrible disease of becoming smart... and to know a word such as contrary... I can only imagine what types of diseases I might inflict on others. Like... grammer guru! Or even the the terrible... genius!"

"And if you go on to understand things like political talent and more! Horrible!" Rose gasped. "Terrible! What a vile idea!"

They both fell to their seats in laughter, shaking until the giggling brought tears to Albus' eyes, who wiped them away. Finally, he managed to stop giggling, gaining a cramp from laughing so hard.

"But seriously." Albus said, attempting to look serious, but miserably failing. "I would never want to be the victim of one of the Terrible Two, as they are infamously called throughout Hogwarts."

"Aw, dear brother, you flatter us." James and Louis walked in the door, and the curly haired Jame's grinned cheekily.

Rose smirked. "I would say that you two have caught the disease as well."

"What?" Louis asked in horror. "A disease? When? Where?"

Albus fell to the ground, laughing and bursting into tears. It was just to much for him.

Covering her mouth in a ladylike fashion, Rose quietly giggled. Pretty soon though, it became too much for her and she as well was on the ground, snorting in laughter, pounding the floor with her fists.

Louis, who was so cheerful that he couldn't help but laugh when others did, let out a huge snort, letting out the contained laughter, and he soon as well burst into a fit of giggles, his body shaking in glee at something he had no idea about.

James just stared at them incredilously, as though they had turned batty or crazy.

* * *

Scorpions were to be hated, and Albus certainly hated one by the name of Scorpius.

"You may nearly be a pureblood, but you've still got mud in your blood." The blond twit sneered. "You even more so, Weasley."

Rose narrowed her eyes and snarled, but Scorpius only smirked, unfazed.

"It's okay, it's okay." Scorpius said, waving his hands, uncaring, at Rose. "We all do know that you half breeds are only a creature, and not really magical. After all, being the daughter of a Mudblood, it only makes sense that you would have to steal about half of the magic that you have right now. You know, it's practically the fault of Mudbloods that there's such a pathetic thing as a squib, unmagical muggles from a magical family. You know, it's just like you're all craddle robbers..."

He laughed and stepped to the side as Rose lunged at him, and Albus quickly caught her by the stomach before the reddish-brown haired girl could get a good swing in. Honestly, you did _not_ want to get on Rose's bad side. With her younger brother and living with her older brother, Nicolas, she knew how to pack a punch.

Not that she had ever punched Albus... No, that ten day stay at the hospital wasn't because he had aggravated Her and had been ruthlessly attacked by a red faced, fuming Rose... Nope, not at all...

"Ignore him." Albus muttered. "Scorpius is just being a total twit."

Rose narrowed her eyes. "Just one punch. Please? He'll be unconscious before the pain hits, I promise."

Albus sighed. As tempting as it was... "I don't want us to get in trouble before the sorting ceremony's even started. After that, I really don't care if you throw him in the middle of the Forbidden Forest."

Rose sighed. "Fine. Now get your hands off of me."

Albus raised an eyebrow, feeling suspicious, but let go of his cousin. "Now, remember to stay calm."

"Don't lecture me." Rose sighed. "I can see why dad would want me to beat this brat in every test. Cockiness and arrogance must run in the family."

Scorpius sneered just as his name was called. "Malfoy, Scorpius!"

"I bet that he's in Slytherin, that snake."

"Like I'm going to argue that?"

Albus shrugged. "I suppose that you'd be too smart to take that bet." He replied with a roll of his eyes and then glared angrily at that prat, Scorpius as he walked to the Slytherin table, smiling smugly.

"His head seems quite hollow." Rose noted dryly. "Perhaps I can fill up that thick skull of his with some muggle acid, or perhaps some curses can just bounce around in there." She spat out in anger, her cheeks still a flaming red.

"It's okay..." Albus soothed in what he knew was a futile attempt to calm Rose down. "Be calm, Rose. By getting mad, you'd simply be helping Scorpius. He wants to aggravate you, Rose. Don't take the bait." He urged.

Rose clenched the hem of her robes in her hands. "I hate him." She hissed in the voice of a snake. "Watch your back, Scorpius Malfoy. I'll be behind your every step, waiting to strike you down."

Oh, Albus was already starting to hate this...

Rose glared with the raw anger of a young child. "I declare war, Malfoy."

As he examined her in surprise, Albus felt a shiver crawl down his spine as he saw the look in Rose's eyes. It wasn't exactly hatred, but it was the look that James usually got when he was about to prank Albus.

Scary...

Then the voice spoke, though it couldn't possibly have been Rose's voice. It was an amused, cold voice that sent a cold chill rushing down Albus' spine.

"Time to kill..."


	4. I Didn't Do It, I Swear!

**A/N:** I am _so_ not in a Harry Potter mood... this story will be updated slowly, slowly, slowly. My apologies in advance, but I am just not feeling it. I might even just make this a twelve chapter, lame story or something along those lines. Ugh.

**IMPORTANT!**

**My computer is not working right now, so updates will be SLOW SLOW SLOW!**

* * *

"Ackkkkkk! I promise, Professors, I didn't do- ACKK! Oops... sorry Mr. Baron... I didn't mean to go through you, I swear! Um... hi Peeves... no, I didn't do that... than- arrrgh! What am I saying? I didn't do it!" Albus nimbly leaped up the staircases, jumped onto them two steps at a time, hoping desperately that he would be able to escape the wrath of the Professors.

"ALBUS POTTER! YOU'RE _DEAD_!"

The brown haired boy gulped at Professor McLaggen's outraged cry.

"Potter." Professor Zabini calmly walked towards him with a startling speed. "I'll give you twenty seconds to apologize before you become shreds of flesh torn off of your second skin, and then covered in needles on your left arm so that your arm will resemble a porcupine, then, I will send a hex that will effectively intensify your nerves and sense of touch so that even moving in the slightest will cause you pain, and after that, your eyes will be popped out and after that..."

Albus wasn't stupid enough to stick around anymore. He rounded a corner and cast a lame attempt at a hex at the professors, then instantly dashed off.

_James, you are _so _dead_. Albus thought angrily to himself. It wasn't his fault that James had shaved the swaggering Professor Cormac McLaggen's hair, then dyed his teeth the color of puke then proceeded to blame him and dump McLaggen into a pool of green paint saying "I'm-actually-Slytherin-the-hat-made-a-mistake"! And it also wasn't his fault that James had swapped the head of Slytherin, Professor Zabini's, wand with a fake toy one that turned into a chicken! Also, the gluing all the homework and textbooks together to make chairs and desks were so not his doing!

_I didn't do it..._ he mentally moaned to himself.

But of course, the professors wouldn't believe him anyways if he told then the truth anyways!

_Biased_. Some part of him muttered angrily. Just because he was James' brother, the brother of the infamous, horrible James of the 'Terrible Two', didn't mean that he was a prank-loving-idiot as well!

_But that's exactly what you are..._ Some blunt part of him muttered, annoyed.

_Oh, shut up_. What was left of Albus' sanity muttered feeling sore and like his ego had taken a serious, stupid beating.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

Albus ducked his head as the spell came flying at his head, and continued running.

"Hah! We've got you now!"

Albus spun around, then his heart sank as he noticed the wall behind him. _Dead end... this isn't good..._ The brown haired boy gulped, then turned his head wildly this way and that searching for an escape. _Please let there be a door, please let there be a door, please let there be a door..._

There was a door.

Albus' eyes lit up, and he ran in, not noticing the sign on the front of the door. Heck, who cared about the sign on the door? He was safe! Albus twisted the lock on the door and it was soon followed by harsh pounding and angry yells of "Albus Potter, you'd better open this door _right now_ or else!" echoing in the room.

"I'm innocent, professors!" Albus called, and then turned around, and his face turned a fierce shade of red. He was in the bathroom. The _girl's_ bathroom, to be more exact.

_Haven't I suffered enough today? _The brown haired boy thought to himself, but he sighed and walked over to the nearest sink, glancing at himself in the mirror. Albus' face was a boiling, fierce red from running so much, and his forehead was practically layered with thick, liters of sweat.

The mirror itself looked quite horrible. It was cracked and had dirt on it, and Albus' form was twisted and shadow-like when shown near the cracks.

With a sigh, he turned the nozzle on the tap, hoping to get some water. No such luck. He just _had _to get the tap that was broken and not working. "Open!" He finally hissed in annoyance, glaring at the almost realistic life-like carving of a snake on the tap.

_Creeeeak..._

Albus whipped his head to the side in shock as the sound of stone against stone, then let out a strangled yell as he felt his body being sucked into... well... something...

A scream echoed in the room, then it was empty, as though nothing were there. In the broken glass of the mirror, two glowing golden eyes peered out. Outside of the mirror, there was nothing.

* * *

"ALBUS!" Finally the two professors broke into the girl's room. Professor McLaggen's was red from anger, and his hair was green from Jame's 'extra package'.

Professor Zabini, though calm, had the eyes of a quiet, furious murderer. "I will slowly boil your blood, then I will cut your fingers off, one by one, Potter." He said in a slow, sadistic, cold voice.

"Wait a minute... where is he?"

Both professors looked around. With a sigh, Professor McLaggen walked over to the nearest sink. "I need to wash this horrid stuff off..." He muttered to himself.

Then he looked up, perhaps his greatest mistake. Because staring back, were cold, glowing yellow snakelike eyes staring back. His eyes widened. "Basilisk..." He whispered, before his body froze, and he fell to the ground, soundless.

"Professor!" Professor Zabini raced over, then shook McLaggen roughly. "Wake up! Wake up!"

He pulled out his wand, swallowing. "Come on, McLaggen. We need to warn the school." It was had not to panic. "I think.. the Basilisk's back."

* * *

**Sneak Peek at the Next Chapter:**

Albus stared at the room around him in wonder.

_Where am I?_ He tried to ask the question aloud, but his mouth wouldn't work. One moment he was in a bathroom, and the next... _Where am I_?

The walls around him were pitch, dark black, and his body felt cold and stiff.

"Wheeeere arressss you, you assssk?" A voice asked, hissing coldly.

"Y-y-yes." Albus replied, coughing as a harsh draft blew. His body felt as though all of the warmth had been blown out of him. "W-where am I, may I asssk?" Without noticing it, he had lengthened his s'.

A giant, terrifying snake slithered out, glowing golden eyes at Albus' chin. It smiled, if a snake could smile, that is.

"Donnnn't you kkkkknow? You'reee in theee Bassssilissssk'ssss Laaair."

And suddenly, without knowing why, a chill went down Albus' spine.


	5. The Basilisk's Lair

Albus stared at the room around him in wonder.

_Where am I?_ He tried to ask the question aloud, but his mouth wouldn't work. One moment he was in a bathroom, and the next... _Where am I_?

The walls around him were pitch, dark black, and his body felt cold and stiff.

"Wheeeere arressss you, you assssk?" A voice asked, hissing coldly.

"Y-y-yes." Albus replied, coughing as a harsh draft blew. His body felt as though all of the warmth had been blown out of him. "W-where am I, may I asssk?" Without noticing it, he had lengthened his s'.

A giant, terrifying snake slithered out, glowing golden eyes at Albus' chin. It smiled, if a snake could smile, that is.

"Donnnn't you kkkkknow? You'reee in theee Bassssilissssk'ssss Laaair."

And suddenly, without knowing why, a chill went down Albus' spine. "Who are you?" He asked, suddenly feeling very cold.

There was a laugh. "Guessss."

"Um... John Parker. No? Erin Daniels. Nope? Okay. Um... Sarah Meeks. Oh, you're a guy, right. Sorry. Wait... snakes have genders? Ow, ow, okay, okay! Stop choking me already."

_Drip, drip, drip_.

"What is this place? How did I get in here?" Albus demanded.

"Donnnn't you knnnnow aboutttt the Chammmmber of Sssecretssss?" The snake hissed.

"Um.. nooo?"

"Assssk onnne offf yourrr teachhhherssss." The snake hissed.

"Whyyy won'ttt youuu telll meee?" Albus inquired, then frowned. Darn. He was starting to get the snake's accent. "Besssidesss, whyyy won'tttt you ssstare meee in the eyessss?"

"Becausse if I dooo, you'lll gettt your ssssoul ssssucked out." The snake replied, with a roll of it's pupiless glowing golden eyes. Though Albus wondered to himself if the snake was joking or not. "Nooo, reallly." The snake exclaimed. "I'mmmm a basssilisssk."

"Gahhh!" Albus half-cried, half-long-long-long-hissed. "Waiiit... isssssn't it ssso thhatttt you'reee underrr the controlll of theee heirrr of Sssslytherinnnn?"

"Yesss, it _wassss_." The basilisk corrected with a sigh. "Honessstly, nowww I'mmm freeee!"

"I ssssseee..." Albus frowned. "Diddddn'tttt my daddd fightttt youuuu?"

"Maybeee he didddd, maybesss he didn'tttt." Albus could have sworn that the basilisk sounded amused. "Wassss your daddd the parssssletongueee that freeedddd meeee?"

"I thinkkkk sssssso..." Albus replied slowly.

"I ssssssee... I hateeedddd being contttttrollled." The basilisk sighed. "It wassss ssso annoyyyyingggg."

"I sssssymphasize." Albus said. "I hattte when Jamessss makessss me do ssstuff."

"Jamessss? Can I sssssuck hissss sssssoul outttt?"

"Um... noooo..."

Albus talked to the snake and he realized that, maybe, the snake wasn't so bad after all. For some reason, suddenly, Albus felt like he had a bond with the snake, but he just wasn't really sure if that was a good thing... or a bad thing.

* * *

Albus walked deeper into the Chamber of Secrets, the basilisk curled up around his neck.

"Ouch!" He pricked his finger against... something. He wasn't exactly sure that he wanted to know whatever had pricked his finger, but the basilisk claimed that it was the fang of his shedded skin.

"Booookkkkk..." The basilisk slithered off of Albus, and slithered over to a black notebook.

Almost as though he was being controlled, Albus reached out, feeling intoxicated. He wasn't sure why, but his mind felt sluggish and slow, almost as though he was being controlled. The boy was in a trance.

The notebook's cover was a dark, smoky black and the middle was ripped open, almost as though it had been stabbed with something. Something red dripped at the edges, almost like blood, and if Albus was awake, a scream might've reached his ears, though it might have just been his imagination.

Albus picked it up, and ran his bleeding finger around the ripped hole. The black, torn bits of the notebook straightened as though electrified, and long, thin, spidery black threads began to float out of them, waving in the air though there was no wind.

For a moment, the still basilisk thought that he saw a flash of red in Albus' eyes, and slithered into the shadows. "Massster..." He hissed as though he couldn't help himself, though the word was spat out in vemon, layered with hate and... fear?

The blood from Albus' finger dripped onto the page. His vision blurred and spun. The blood dripped onto the notebook and then disappeared as though absorbed.

For a moment, he felt something that all humans detest running throughout his entire body.

Fear.

The threads spun and entwined with each other, moving in a frenzied dance. Albus panicked. "STOP!" He yelled.

The threads stopped. Then fell down to the notebook. His vision cleared.

_What... what was that_? Albus thought to himself, swallowing. He shakily stood up, then rubbed at his temples. "My head hurts..." He mumbled and took a step forwards. "Hey, basilisk?" He asked, turning his head about. Where was the snake?

"Y-yessss?" The basilisk slithered into the open, golden eyes on the ground, refusing to even look at Albus' chin.

"What's wrong?" Albus asked.

"Ma-masssster'sss eyesssss..." The basilisk's eyes were hateful and cold.

"I don't have them now. See? I'm just Albus." The basilisk's eyes slowly rose. "Albus. Not master. Friend."

"Bassssilisssk'sss have no friendssss!" The basilisk replied angrily.

"Okay, okay. Calm. Calm."

"Boookkkkkk... bookkkk ssssscaresssss..."

"What's wrong with the book?" Albus asked curiously.

"Ssssscaressssss!" The basilisk said angrily. "Notttt naturallll. Killlll bookkk... horribleeeee booookkkkk..."

It slithered over to the black book.

Albus froze as he stared at the black notebook. The middle wasn't ripped anymore. It was perfect.

The basilisk bit the book.

It ripped. Albus touched it. It remended itself again.

Then the pages flipped as though a strong wind was blowing, and it opened to an empty page. Then, the words came, written in an unseen hand.

_Hello. My name is Mal Lucius Foy. Who are you?_

* * *

**A/N:** Hope that you liked this chapter! I am sooo not in a Harry Potter mood. Hopefully this chapter was good for you. About the mending. Remember when Lucius said "I shall be freed by one of the Potters"? In the prologue? This was because if a Potter's blood touches this book, it will mend. So, hope you enjoyed, and get ready for the next installment!


	6. The Return of the Chamber

_James can be totally annoying. His attitude is just like, his way or the highway._ Albus complained to Mal.

_I totally sympathize. _Mal replied. _I once served a horrible Lord and acted as his most fierce follower... And because of that, I was betrayed by my loved ones and cast away by all. But one day, I shall repay the debt._

_If he was a horrible lord, then why did you serve him?_

For a moment, none of the inky black words came and Albus was worried that he had offended Mal in some sort of way. He certainly hoped not. Mal was proving to be a kind, friendly person.

_He was a coward._ Mal wrote. Albus could imagine the man in the diary as an angry man, and imagined that he would be speaking in a dark, angry tone. Not that he blamed him. Albus imagined this lord to be a terrible man who had created bad memories. Perhaps he shouldn't have asked... bringing up bad memories wasn't exactly a nice ting to, and Albus didn't want Mal to be lonely in that diary either._ He took my son hostage and threatened to kill him. So I did everything to keep my son safe... But I messed up on my most important mission of all._

_Oh no! What happened? Is your son okay now?_

_Okay? Okay's not the right word for it. My son was used to replace me, and my very own son very soon became a loyal, unwavering follower. He was nothing more than scum, though I loved him too much at the time to admit it. Now... _Albus imagined the man giving a weary, withering sigh. _I suppose that I still do love him. As a father, I have not as much love of the boy's mother but... even though I now know that it was highly likely that my son never truly felt any love for me I can't help but wonder if I might've just gone wrong with him somewhere. I loved him so much... I need to see his sweet, childish smile again... even if it's only in a fading dream... though now I haven't even the right to dream, and my life when I'm not conversing with you is a nightmare of demons plaguing my mind. All I ever see is my son's face, scornful and full of hatred._

Albus frowned. Mal's son sounded like a terrible person.

_I'd never do that to my dad._ He thought to _himself._ _That's so mean. But I guess that Mr. Mal loves his son no matter what... that must be sad, to have a son he loves so much betray him just like that._

"Timmmmeessss to goessss to sssssschool, sssssiiieeer." The basilisk hissed.

"Ah. Right." Albus scribes down a quick goodbye to Mal and nodded to the basilisk, careful not to meet the snake's eyes.

"Cannnn III fffffeeeeedd?" The basilisk hissed in it's cold, snake voice.

"If you're talking about mice, then feel free to."

"Thattt issss notttt whattt Iii ssssaysssss." The basilisk scowled.

"Not on humans." Albus retorted. The boy had learned quickly that the basilisk wanted human souls to eat (seriously, magical creatures could be scary... he wondered if muggles had easier lives, and had wistfully wondered about it.)

"Picky massssster." The basilisk grumbled. "Fineessssw..." It sighed, but a mischievous look entered it's petrifing eyes. " 'Mice', eh?"

Even though he was nervous, Albus stupidly decided to ignore the cold, warning feeling that he was getting. He would regret that in the next hour to come.

* * *

Neville Longbottom stood in front of a wall, his body shaking, his eyes wide in fear. It was just like his second year, twenty-four (is that right?) years ago. Written in bright red, with the petrified form of James on the ground

_THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED._

Again? Calm... calm... calm... oh, who was he fooling, Neville was seriously freaking out! _Who should I yell for_?

"SOMEBODY!"

_I faced Voldemort. I've survived the third Wizard War. I... am... still freaking out?! _"Neville!" A voice shouted as Professor Rogi stomped over to him. "What on earth are you doing, staring stupidly at a blank wa-whoa."

"Whoa is right." Neville agreed shakily. "What do we do?"

Professor Rogi took a deep breath, and he nodded to himself. "It's our duty as professors to keep calm... dear Dumbledoor, is that James Potter on the ground?"

"He's petrified. It's the basilisk... though I'm really not sure how..."

"Impossible. The basilisk was killed twenty-four years ago. Now, Neville, help me get this boy to the infirmary... we'll have Sue look at him."

"I'll prepare some Mandrakes with my second year class."

"Not first?"

"Why should it be first? It's in the second year curriculum, not the first year curriculum." Neville tilted his head in confusion.

Professor Rogi sighed. "Albus, James' brother is in his first year. Don't you think he'd want to help out in some way?"

Neville thought back to the terror he had felt when Hermione had been petrified, and how much he had wanted to help. "Yeah. Anyways, we need to go and tell the Headmaster. I really don't want the students to find out... but it'll be needed in order to ensure the safety measures." He swallowed. "Is it just me or are you terrified?"

"I'm shaking." Professor Rogi agreed. "But we have to stay calm. Freak out after this is over."

"How are you so calm?"

"I'm not. I'm going to the Forbidden Forest later to get a good, nice scream of terror." Professor Rogi smiled wanly. "I just hope that I can hold in all these jitters until then... though I'm on the end of my rope, to be honest. I need a scream, and soon."

"I see." Neville swallowed. "Can I scream right now?"

"Go ahead."

Neville screamed.


	7. Transition

**_IMPORTANT!_ A/N**:I'm setting up a poll for this. Do you want me to make Teddy Lupin, Rose Weasley, or Scorpius Malfoy a main character? Take da poll! Or I'm going to be dizzy in confusion. Or just review...

* * *

Albus grabbed onto the wooden firming of his bed, feeling his knees wobble beneath him. Blots floated in front of his eyes as he straightened himself.

"The news is that startling, is it?" Professor Longbottom asked sadly, chewing his bottom lip.

Albus didn't know how hearing that James had been petrified had caused his body to just suddenly feel so weak. There was no way it could! His brain felt like it had been stirred to mush, and his legs were numb.

"How?"

Professor Longbottom hesitated. "I shouldn't tell you but... your dad's told you about his second year at Hogwarts, right?" Albus nodded quickly, remembering the amazing story about Tom Riddle and the basilisk. "It's open. Again. The lair, I mean."

Albus drew in a sharp breath. No way. No way.

"_Caaan I feeedddssss, masssster?"_

"_No humanssss."_

The snake... could it be? No way. Albus shook his head, ignoring the way if felt like his brains were being swished like cold jelly. "W-when can we plant the mandrakes?" His words stumbled over each other, remembering that small, tiny detail that Aunt Hermione had taught him. _You never know what might happen_. She had said. _But then again, it's not going to be as if there'll be another wizard war_. Professor Longbottom was saying something. What was he saying?

"...Do you want to go see him?" Neville asked, sounding concerned. "Harry... I mean... your dad... the Headmaster's already contacted him. In a while, he and Ginny... I mean your mom... will come. James being still might seem a bit of a shock... Harry tells me he's quite hyper... but you'll see that he'll be fine. It's okay."

Albus' brain didn't register any sympathy for himself. Though his body felt weak and his vision hazy, his mind said no words of regret. He felt horrible that something had happened to James.. he should have been horrified from the news, yet he felt cool and calm, as if someone else had taken over his mind and commanded "You must be calm."

And Albus, for whatever reason, had _obeyed._ "I want to see him." Why was his voice so shaky? He felt calm.

Calm.

What a funny word. Albus had read some muggle studies that some people felt so shocked that though their body showed it, their mind had no idea what to do, and therefore frantically made all thoughts calm and normal. The reason wasn't because of indifference. It was because their brain had lost all possible connection to emotion. How frightening.

Albus felt so weak, so horrible. What was wrong with him?

Professor Longbottom smiled sadly, then nodded. "We're all worried." He said gently. "Don't worry. We'll figure this out..." He stared worriedly at the ground, biting his lip. A harsh look had entered his eyes. Not just worry... but... anger? Why was the Professor so angry?

The teacher shook his head, looking weary.

"Anyways, you said that you wanted to see James, right? Come on, he's at the end of the infirmary.

* * *

_"You did it, didn't you?" _Albus hissed angrily as the basilisk began to slip up his leg, hissing in a quiet, sly voice.

"_Did whatsss, masssster?_" The basilisk asked innocently, laughs escaping it's horrible mouth._  
_

"_You petrified my brother!_" Albus said angrily. He had come into the lair to come down, but the moment that he had seen that horrible basilisk anger had washed over him and he had approached the basilisk with anger that felt like it should have belonged to a stranger but was being channeled throughout his body. "_Why did you do it!?"_

The basilisk eyed him in cold amusement. "_I wanted to feedsss, massster." _It replied cooly.

Albus's rage amplified, and he felt like throttling the snake. "_You..." _He snarled, then took a deep breath and shook his head. This was unlike himself. Being angry would do him no good. What he had to do now was think clearly, and without emotions to drag him down.

...Is what he would have thought if he was smarter. But Albus, in all his academic smarts, was sort of... well... _stupid_. At least when it came to common sense. So, of course, that quiet voice in the back of his head said it to him.

_You can't afford to get angry now, Albus_. It whispered with a quiet laugh, as though it knew some sort of an inside _joke_ that Albus was absolutely clueless to. Actually, it probably did. Wait... it _definitely _did. _Be calm. Steady yourself.__  
_

_Easy for you to say._ Albus' brain replied sullenly. _This horrible snake hurt my brother. How am I supposed to forgive that?_

_Punish it_. The voice suggested. _But don't let your emotions make the punishment more harsh, and you should properly talk it over too, before you do something TOO stupid._

The voice knew him so well.

"_Ssso, you had no good reason for petrifying my brother_?" Albus asked angrily.

The basilisk slithered up Albus' arm, looping around in spirals. "_Isss ssssorry, massster. Tellsssss me what not to feed, and I won'tssss. Promisssse."_

_"What have I to trust left in your empty promisssesss?"_ Albus asked angrily, the anger clouding his vision again.

For a moment the snake was silent, then it draped itself around Albus' neck and lightly bit it, as though it was sad. (Uh... if a bite _could _be sad. That sounded lame... cough cough, back to the story now...) "_Lassst chance, massster."_

_"What have I to gain from knowing you? You already petrified my brother!"_

_"Knowledge." _A desperation began to crawl into the basilisk's voice, and it sounded almost... scared. "_I knowsss many thingsss, massster... a chance... a chance..."_

Albus stared at the ground. Then, a quiet whisper escaped him with a bitter laugh. "_I don't even know your name."_ Albus replied, a weary smile on his features.

Hope seemed to seep into the basilisk's deadly eyes. "_Conscientia_." It whispered."_That is my name."_

* * *

**A/N:** You are probably going like "Conscientia? What kind of a name is Conscientia? That is lame, stupid, and it sounds like a girlish thing to name a snake." The reason I chose this name for the snake is because conscientia is the latin word for conscience and knowledge. The basilisk is smart, and then there's this strange voice in Albus' head that's almost like a different person. Some might say that it's a conscience. Anyways, the english meanings of conscientia have a role in this fic, which is why I chose the name._  
_


	8. Introducing Scorpius Malfoy

**A/N:** This fic will be closing up soon. For those who were actually interested in this, and not just reading it because you felt sorry for this lame-o excuse for an author, I apologize. Good news, this is a series fiction, so I might just make a sequel. If I get into this, maybe it'll even become a trilogy. But in any case, this will only be 10 chapters or so, so enjoy while you can... if you don't hate this fic, that is, and think that a 10 year old could have written it...

* * *

Albus's stomach felt hot. And it wasn't just the snake that was coiled around it. It was a sick, churning feeling of total guilt.

_This is all your fault_. The voice inside his head whispered almost smugly. _Your fault that your own brother got petrified, your fault that the infamous Chamber of Secrets has been reopened. Your fault. Your fault. Your fault._

_Shut up_. Albus muttered angrily, unsure if he was angry with the voice, angry with the basilisk, or just with himself for being powerless to stop it all.

The snake slid up his body, and it's tongue poked out at Albus as he stepped into the Gryffindor Common Room.

"_Ssstay out of sssight_." Albus hissed angrily, unsure of why he was smuggling Conscientia into the Gryffindor boy's room anyways.

"_Pah."_ Conscientia spat in disgust, his tongue zipping back and forth in disgust. Albus felt queasy. "_Out of sssight? How boring. Ssscare weaklingsss. Let themsss ssscream. Funny."_

The snake sure had a weird sense of humour. Albus laughed nervously, but nobody turned to look at him. _Invisible... invisible... I'm totally invisible..._ Albus' tongue felt dry. _I wish that I really _was_ invisible_. Albus thought wistfully. Why couldn't he have been the older one? But nope, instead _James_ was the one who got the invisibility cloak. So unfair.

Albus bolted for the stairs and ran into the first year dorm. Conscientia slid out, and then quickly darted under Albus' bed. _What do I do? _Albus' stomach churned in discomfort. He hated this._  
_

"_Weakkkling..." _Conscientia hissed, and sighed. "_And sssstillsssss massster... I don't ssserve weak masssterss. Mussst be ssstrong, yesss._"_  
_

"_Hold that thought._" Albus ran into the first year bathroom and hurled, still feeling weak and sick to his stomach. "_I can't do thisss..."_ He moaned to Conscientia. "_Pleassse don't attack anything elssse..._"

"_Hmph._" Conscientia wrinkled her nose. "_Whatever, weakling. Anywaysss.. don't you have to get to class?"_

Albus scowled. "_Don't... don't do anything, okay?"_

_"Doesss the massster beg his subject?"_ The young basilisk smirked, sounding amused. "_How funny that the masster is pathetic enough to grovel at hisss sssservant'sss feet._" A scratchy, soft sound escaped her throat. Was that... a laugh?

"_Sssshut... ssshut up._"Albus felt his face turn red.

"_Oooh... I sssmell humansss. Can I feed?"_

Albus felt weary, worn out anger course through him. "_NO. Shut up, you sstupid ssnake, before I _make_ you."_

It must have sensed Albus' rage, because instead of giving him a sarcastic retort, Conscientia fell quiet, and slithered up under his shirt. "_Let uss go."_ The basilisk said in a resigned tone of voice, and Albus left the dorms.

"_This issn't over." _He growled as he stepped into the hallway, stomping down the stairs angrily. "_I mean it."_

"_My, my, what issn't over?" _

Albus glared, then his eyes widened when he realized that the voice wasn't Conscientia's. His voice slipped out of parseltongue immediately as he wheeled around to face the snake. "What-"

"Heh." Scorpius smirked at Albus, his lips stretched in a smile that was too wide to be real. "Well, well, well. So, Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes is a parseltongue as well, eh? How quaint, don't you agree?"

"Shut up, Scorpius." Albus growled, resisting the urge to punch the Slytherin in the face. "I'm having a bad day, so go away."

"Awn, but that wouldn't be fun, would it?" Scorpius mocked. "Can you help me make it a bit funner?"

"Like I would help you with anything." Albus retorted.

Scorpius smirked as he jumped off the staircase and flew down to the ground, his robes billowing up, eyes curved in amusement as Albus rushed to the banister, eyes wide in shock.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Later he swore that it was pure instinct, but all that Albus could feel was fear. _Nobody's allowed to die. _He thought. _Not even Scorpius_. He could hear a rushing sound in his ears, and his heart jumped around in his ribcage, thumping against his bones like a hammer. "Wh- what the heck!? Were you trying to phych me out or something?"

Scorpius smirked again and sat on top of the staircase's bannister so that he looked down upon Albus. "I _knew_ that you'd save me! Geez, you're so predictable, Mr. GTS."

"You... you did that on _purpose_? What if I didn't save you on time? How could you just do that?" Albus felt his cheeks flush red with anger.

"Because I trusted you to be a stupid idiot." Scorpius replied flippantly, tossing his wand between his hands. "Now, Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes, who were you talking to a moment ago?"

"Nobody but a slimy snake."

"You should know that snakes aren't slimy. After all, there's one inside your shirt, isn't there?" Scorpius laughed mockingly. "What kind is it? Wait, let me guess..." He leaned forwards, a knowing look in his eyes. "...it's the Basilisk, isn't it? To think that you're the one who's controlling it... and it attacked your brother didn't it?" He swung his legs forwards and back with a laugh.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Albus replied stiffly.

"_Yess, you do." _Scorpius hissed, looking amused. "_Now bring out that sssnake that you own."__  
_

"_HE DOESN'T OWN ME, BRAT!" _Conscienta roared, her head poking out of Albus' shirt and her eyes met Scorpius'.

Scorpius stiffened, then he gasped. "Wha-" His eyes rolled back and the Malfoy fell down, down, down. And this time, Albus couldn't levitate him. He wasn't fast enough.


	9. Introducing Teddy Lupin

**A/N: **I don't care anymore... I'm changing the ages!

Teddy Lupin is in his 6th year and Victorie is in her 5th year. James and Louis are still in 2nd year. I'm going to make Molly and Lucy Weasley (Percy and Audrey's daughters) twins, with Molly as about three hours older, and both are in their 3rd years. And if you're upset about me changing this, then stop reading.

* * *

"That stupid snake!" Scorpius had never felt so weak and undefended. _He _had always been there for Scorpius, and now with him gone...

"Maybe it was for the better." Teddy reasoned. "After all, you needed me this whole time to help control him... don't you think that it's better, now that he's gone? You don't have to get me to hold him back from possessing you now..."

"But... he protected me." Scorpius didn't know why he felt so empty. He had cursed his grandfather for making him a horcrux, he had always hated it, hated the voice that always whispered in his mind, and hated that nobody else could hear him.

"Lucius Malfoy always terrified me whenever I went into your mind. I wonder what your mind looks like now that he's gone... his soul presence was always tight around your thoughts, sort of like it was strangling you, but his web was intertwined really deeply... if it suddenly disappeared, your mind might collapse." Teddy frowned. "You're feeling okay, right, Scorpius?"

"Other than I just fell down from the staircase and the only reason I survived was because of you... yeah, I feel greeeeat." Scorpius replied sarcastically.

Teddy sighed. "Why do you have to be so rude?" He asked rhetorically. "I've known you every since you came to Hogwarts... two months. Would it hurt you to be a little nicer?"

Scorpius pretended to think about it. "Yes." He finally said. "It would hurt me to be nicer to you, and I think tolerating you is already good enough for someone like you. And it's not rudeness, it's acting my rank."

"How would it hurt you? Oh, right, you're all ego. It would hurt your ego, I suppose?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Stop bickering." Madame Pomphrey was suddenly behind Teddy, and the old, wrinkled nurse put a hand on her hips. "Honestly, you two were the most unlikely friends. Next thing I know, it'll rain sprinkles and sugar."

"I can arrange that." Scorpius said cheekily.

"None of that cheekiness from _you_, Mr. Malfoy. Now, Mr. Lupin, would you be so nice as to delve into his mind?"

The blue haired boy nodded. "I was planning on doing that anyways." He swallowed and turned to Scorpius. "Ready?"

Scorpius nodded as Teddy made eye contact.

"LEGILIMENS!"

* * *

"What... what is this?"

Ruin.

Was this what a shredded mind looked like? Webs of thought hung onto each other as lifelines, barely surviving. _How could such a place exist? _Everything looked like it was on the verge of collapse. Shredded bits of unidentified things lay on the ground.

_If this is what his central mind looks like... what about his mindscape?_

Teddy ran forwards, and approached a thin, scraggly looking shack. "This can't be happening..." He muttered as he approached it and carefully opened the door.

A wand floated in the middle of the room, and the bare, broken walls were lined with thin, muggle birthday cake candles. A few books had collapsed onto the floor, but they were skeletons, as though they had been half burned then declared too unimportant to completely destroy.

_What happened to that stuck up castle that I always hated seeing?_ Teddy wondered. _Even if I hate the guy, I wouldn't wish this type of mindscape on anybody..._

A mindscape was the core of a person. It was that person's will, everything that they stood for... Teddy's own mindscape was a giant chess board, made out of black and dark gray or white and light beige photos. His mindscape focused on his memories, his loyalties, and his logical way of thinking things through.

_Could do great in Ravenclaw..._

Why was he even thinking about his house at such a time? _Besides, I'm a Gryffindor._

Teddy never forgot a mindscape. To forget a mindscape was like telling someone that they didn't matter, that they were worthless, and Teddy would never do something unforgivable like that.

Scorpius'... it had been a grand, majestic castle that broke all the limits, it went even higher that the sky. The grand, book lined shelves had thick, medival-style torches protruding out of them, with a brilliant golden flame. Wands danced around every corner, levitating old spell books and random household objects (a child's scrawled bit of art, a fake wand that turned into a chicken when Teddy had touched it, curious about a wand levitating a wand).

Now... it had been reduced to this? A bare, unstable shack?

_I need to talk to Albus about the snake..._

...But that would mean revealing that he was Scorpius' friend. And to do that would mean being shunned and thought as a traitor by all of Gryffindor. _Do I really want to do this for _Malfoy_? _Teddy stared at the small shack and shook his head. _What kind of friend would I be if I didn't?_

* * *

"Albus..." Teddy ran forwards and grabbed Albus' wrist. _It's now or never._ "Um... I wanted to talk to you about... something..."

The dark haired boy turned around and tilted his head to the side. "What is it?"

"Um... your snake... it's a basilisk, right?"

"What are you talking abo-"

"It's okay. I know about it. I don't care whether you're a parseltongue or not... I'm friends with Scorpius, after all. But anyways... I need you and your snake to come to the Hospital Wing... after classes, okay? 4:00pm on Thursday."

"Wha-"

"See you there!" Teddy ran off to the Hospital Wing, and stopped when he reached Scorpius' bed. "How is he?" The blue haired boy asked Victorie.

The girl hesitated for a second, then gave Teddy a shaky, slightly scared smile. "I'm trying to repair his mind, but I need some help. I need a basilisk, and fast, or else Scorpius' mind will never return to normal..."

* * *

**A/N: **Dun dun dun! What do you think of my attempt at a cliffhanger? Sucky? Okay, fine... (pouts)


	10. Victoire and the Hints of Victory

Victoire closed her eyes as she allowed herself to fit inside Scorpius' mindwaves. They were nice enough, soft strands of floating silver that created an eerie humming noise as they flew around. It really wasn't that bad. But it was just that... they tickled her. And Victoire was an incredibly ticklish person.

The blond allowed her own mindwaves to pulse and mingle slightly with Scorpius', then frowned at the calm that she felt. "Amazing..." She muttered as she slid out of his mindwaves and back into reality. "It's incredibly calm." She informed Teddy as Scorpius grunted, sitting up again and shaking his head in obvious discomfort. "When Lucius was in his mind, Scorpius was really..." She waved her hands up and down. "...jagged. But now, they're like music."

Teddy raised an eyebrow. "Are they prettier than mine?" He asked.

Victoire smirked. "Maybe..." She returned cheekily.

"Hmph! I'd say any day that your mindscape is the prettiest of them all!" Teddy exclaimed, his tone mock-injured.

Victoire just stuck out her tongue, and turned to Scorpius. "Albus will be coming anytime soon now, with the basilisk. Then we can see what happened to Lucius."

Scorpius shook his head. "No need." He replied, his tone of voice slightly arrogant, though Victoire supposed that it was _always_ quite arrogant to her ears. "I already know what's happened to him. He's stuck in another horcrux... the diary of Tom Riddle." His light blue eyes scanned the room, then went to the door. "It's in the basilisk's lair, apparently, though I can't say for sure. In fact, if I were to say anything, my wager would be that he's trying to possess Albus right now."

Victoire paled. "How?" She demanded, leaning forwards with wide, worried eyes. "How is that possible? Albus isn't a horcrux... there's no way that he can possess him..."

"Using the diary, he can." Scorpius replied, his tone clipped. "The more that Albus writes into it, the more that he'll be possessed... that's saying that Albus even knows that the Diary exists, or that he's even gotten his hands on it, that is. After all, it's just a hunch..."

"Were you talking about me?" The Hospital Wing's curtain was pushed to the side, and Albus' eyes peeked in, round and accusing, though his tone was mild. "That's rude, you know."

Scorpius shrugged. "Would it be if we _were_ talking about you."

"I know that you were." Albus replied with a wave of his hand. "After all, he said 'the more that _Albus_ writes' and _'that's saying that Albus_ even knows', that's a bit of a dead giveaway when you're using my name in your sentences."

"So you heard everything?"

"Mostly. I've got a diary, and the guy that's writing to me from it's named Mal Lucius Foy. Ring any bells for you?"

"Lucius Malfoy." Scorpius growled, cheeks slightly red.

"A Malfoy..." Albus muttered with a scowl. "Is he, by any chance, a relative?"

"Are you an idiot? Yes. He's my grandfather." Scorpius examined his want. "Let me talk to your basilisk."

Conscientia slid out. "_What doesss two-sssoul want?" _She hissed, golden eyes shut.

"_Where isss he?"_

_"Gonne. In bookssss. No harm." _Conscientia slithered onto the floor and wrapped herself around Scorpius' arm. _"Want back? If you want him back, you're a fooool." _A thin, grating laughter came from her throat.

"_Take me to him." _Scorpius ordered.

"H-hold on a second there..." Albus stepped in front of Scorpius, hands waving wildly in the air. "The diary's in the basilisk's lair... but what can you do?"

"We'll kill him." Scorpius spat out as he pushed himself upright.

Victorie frowned. "We can do it later Scorpius, you're still not used to moving without Lucius in your mind..."

"I'll be fine." Scorpius brushed her off as he stood up, only to collapse again.

Teddy reached out to catch him. "See, this was what Victoire was talking about." He sighed, exasperated as Scorpius shook his head vehemently. "Just wait a little, okay? In two or three days we'll-"

"That's too far away." Scorpius snarled. "We're getting rid of my grandfather _today, _and _right now_."

Albus nodded. "Alright." He agreed. "Let's do it."

"Albus, you can't just make that decision on your own..."

"It's _Scorpius'_ decision. He can make his own choices. Sheesh, just because we're younger than you doesn't make us idiots, you know." Albus smiled. "Come on, Teddy, Victoire, it'll be fine. Go and kiss each other or something while we go into the lair."

Teddy turned bright red. "Not so fast!" He growled. "We're going with you."

Albus frowned unsteadily. "I'm not sure if non-parseltongues will be able to enter the lair..." He mused.

"We'll try it though." Scorpius cut in. "It can probably work. All it needs is a parseltongue to open, there's no reason for a non-parseltongue to not be able to enter the lair..."

"_Let'ssss try." _Conscientia hissed. "_If can't enter, I get to eat them."_

Albus laughed nervously. "_Uhm... please don't eat my friendsss..."_

"_If you eat them, I will kill you, sssnake." _Scorpius growled, eyes narrowing as he brandished his wand threateningly. _"I don't care if I go to Azkabam. Maybe I'll even meet my father there." _He laughed. "_You lay a single fang on them and you die, snake. If you even meet eyes with them..."_

_"I did you a favor, looking into your eyes, didn't I?" _Conscientia grumbled. "_Fine, fine. Whatever_."

Victorie and Teddy met eyes simultaneously. 'What are they talking about?' Teddy mouthed.

'Whatever it is, I don't want to know.' Victoire mouthed back.

"Uhm..." Albus laughed nervously. "You might want to be on your guard... Conscientia wants to eat you... _I'll give you miccccce later, okay?_" He added a small hiss at the end.

"_Whatever_." Conscientia was probably rolling her eyes, but Albus wasn't stupid enough to check.

"Well then... onwards to the lair!"

_Onwards to destroy Lucius_.

The basilisk's lair would be the last stage of their short adventure... or at least Albus hoped that it would be.


	11. The End of it All

_What are you doing to me!? _A voice screamed in Albus' head as he watched Conscientia bite the diary vehemently. _Stop... no... the pain..._ Another scream of pain echoed inside of his head, and suddenly Albus was on his knees as he felt pain course throughout his body.

He felt vaguely aware of Victoir and Teddy kneeling next to him as Scorpius watched him with wide eyes full of worry.

_Stop screaming! _Albus' voice whispered loudly. _I know it hurts, but you're worrying them! You need to go to Madame Pomphrey..._

_Keep screaming. _The stranger's voice demanded. _Feel my pain, Potter's spawn!_

Albus bit his tongue, trying to stop, but the scream kept coming out. _What..._ It felt a bit like when you were in a dream. Everything was blurry and unclear, but the pain came as clear as the wind. And it _hurt_.

"Albus!" He could vaguely hear Victoire shouting his name in worry, but he couldn't find himself responding however much he wanted to.

_Stop it... why are you doing this to them? You're getting them all worried! They didn't do anything to you!_

He heard the stranger's voice give it's coarse, grated chuckle. _This isn't punishing them. It's punishing you!_

_Stop it! I don't want..._

_Exactly._

Just as Albus began to raise his hands to clamp them over his mouth in order to stop the screaming, Conscientia turned and looked him in the eyes, her golden eyes dark and fierce.

_...Did she betray me?_ Was Albus' last thought as he slipped away from the realm of consciousness.

After all, the eyes of a basilisk were tools for murder.

* * *

Albus opened his eyes and awoke in a white world.

"W-h-air am I?" He asked the soft silence, his tongue feeling dry and heavy. He could feel something soft beneath his head, though his legs felt numb and unusable. _I must be lying down._ He decided, and he crossed his jello-like arms over himself in an attempt to rid himself of the feeling of exposure that had been gnawing at him. _If this is heaven then I'm a little worried about what life here will be like..._

Then there was a loud rustle, and the sound of something smashing on the ground- _Definitely not heaven, _Albus decided- and a yell of frustration with a quick shout of "Reparo!", and the next thing that Albus knew James' features had popped into his line of vision, blocking the snow white ceiling.

"He's alive!" James shouted dramatically, a crazy, ecstatic grin on his features. "Phew! I was really worried for a moment, Albus! When I was de-petrified, Teddy, Victoire and the Slytherin-"

"I'm so sorry for being sorted into a house that wasn't the Oh-so-mighty Gryffindor!" Scorpius shouted from somewhere across the room, sounding cross and grouchy.

"Ah, it's okay, the Sorting Hat can be blamed." James waved it off cheerfully.

"I think that Scorpius was being sarcastic..." Victoire muttered, though she still sounded as though she were amused with James' antics.

"Anyways, as soon as I got over the shock of Gryffindor losing three straight Quidditch matches in a row, I immediately came to see you and-"

"What the heck!? How come my importance is second to _Quidditch_!?" Albus yelled, furious at being inferior to a game in James' book.

"It's not that bad, you know, Quidditch is extremely important you-"

"The point is." Victoire cut in, shooting James a dirty look. "We're all safe now. Lucius and the diary were both destroyed, thanks to Conscientia. Apparently as a baby basilisk she had some kind of birth defect that only allows her to murder the weaker half of split personalities."

"..."

"The point is that we're all safe and can half peaceful lives." Teddy sighed.

"Okay, I can live with that."

"I still can't believe that we lost three whole Quidditch matches..."

"Oh, get over it, James."

Albus smiled. It had taken a while, to be sure, but maybe this was finally...

**THE END.**

* * *

**A/N: **Please don't kill me! Okay, fine, it was a sucky ending, and there were still untied ends, but I still hope that you enjoyed this short story!


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